Feed mechanism for drying apparatus.



No. 835,843. PATENTED NOV. 13, 1906.

H. BAETZ. FEED MECHANISM FOR DRYING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 12 1906.

INVENTOR.

M. I ATTORNEK i e T- OFFICE HENRY BAETZ, on ST. Louis M1s souRn."

FEEDSMIEOHANVISM Fon osviue. A ARA-ruslf 1 Specification ofIiettersPatentl I:

* ratnc a Now-:13, 1906.

A umim filed July 12, igos. Seria1No.825,914- a To all whom it mayconcern/.- I I ,Be it known'that I, HENRY BAETZ, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at St. Louis,

State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inFeed Mechanism for Drying Apparatus, of which the following is a full,clear, and exactdescription, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, forming a part hereof. My invention ha relation toimprovements in feed mec nism'for drying apparatus; and it consists inthe novel arrangetion of a drying apparatus with walls partly ment andcombination of parts more fully set forth in the specification andpointed out inthe claims.

In-the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevabroken away, showing myinvention ap lied thereto. Fig. 2 is an enlarged hori'zonta section onthe'broken line 2 2 of Fig. 1, andFig.

3 is a vertical section on line 3 3 of Fig; 2.

The present invention, though specificallydesigned as an improvement 1nconnection with the drying apparatus patented to me under date of August9, 1904, N0. 767,198, may be installed in any drier wherein veneer,lumber; or sheets of any description whatsoever are treated, the objectof the invention being to so confine the pieces in their passage throughthe drying air-current that while they are free to shrink the tendencyto warp is reduced to a minimum and in the majority of cases disappearsaltogether. This insures a substantially uniform product, the shapeof'the dry piece conforming substantially to what it was before thedrying operation, and hence minimizing the waste incidental to suchoperations. The feed mechanism herein, though eminentl adapted for thefeeding of lumber, is app 'cable 'to any material which has a tendencyto behavesimilarl under the same circumstances. The a vantages'of theinvention will become better apparent from a detailed description of theinvention, which is as follows:

Referring to the drawings, and preferably reviewing so much of thepatented apparatus with which the present feed mechanism is directlyassociated, 1 represents a suitable casing provided with a fanor blowerF, located in a chamber 2, the air being drawn into the blower-casingand forced through the heater 3, and suitable pipe connections into theair-chambers or headers 4 4, spaced a suitable" distance apart, the hotair being discharged from the headers into and across of lumber orveneer being thus confine the space between them. Passinfi around eachchamber. or header is an en ess conveyer 5 5, the adjacent lapsof theconveyers traveling jointly in the space between the chambers andforming a feed mechanism for header 4, as shown, the lower lap of thechain being allowed to sag. The chains of each cerr.- veyer areconnected by a series of transverse bars or strips 8, substantiallysemicircularin' 7-5 cross-section, the curved portions being presentedoutwardly. These ares aced about three or four inches apart, .ma 'ngcollectively a conveyer-beltwhose supporting-sur- I face is composed ofa series of transverse ribs, bars, or slats, As the lumber ieces are fedbetween the adjacent laps of t es'e belts the pieces are gripped andheldb'etween the opposing members of each pair of slats, and. since thesurfaces of the latter are rounded they contact with the lumber L,substantially along single lines-or very reduced surfaces, thuspermitting the eziposure of a maximum surface of the lumber to thehot-air cur rents traversing thes ace betweentheheaders o 4 4- andpermitting the hot air to freely circulate around the material treated.Each igce tween a series of slats or bars is revented from bending orwarping durin t e dryin 5 process, and hence when fina ly remove fromthe drier the piece has under one little or no change in shape, save thesmal per cent. 1n shrinkage incident to all dryingo erations.

Such features of constructions own, but

not referred to herein, are either well known or covered by. the patentaforesaid and require no, description in this connection.

Having described my invention, what I claim is-- i 1. A feed mechanismcomprising a pair of juxtaposed conveyers, and having transverse ribformations between which the articles may be confined, substantially asset forth.

2. A feed mechanism comprising a pair of 1 1o juxtaposed endlessconveyors having a series of transverse rlbs or bars spaced suitabledisl 3. A feed mechanism comprising a pair 0 tances apart, the materialtreated being inserted between the adjacent laps of thereonveyers andheld between the aforesaid transverse formations, substantially as setforth.

juxtaposed endless conveyers having a series of transverse rib or'barformations curved in cross-section, whereby the articles insertedbetween the adacent laps are held in position substantially along linesof contact, subsantially as set. forth.

L In combination with a pair of hot-air chambers or headers spaced asuitable distanee apart and delivering. jetsof air into and; across saidspace, an endless conveyertravel-in aroundeachheader, the adjacent lapsof t r e conve ,ers traveling inthe space between the hea ers, rollerson the sides of the eonveyers, a track or-c-hannel for the rollers, aseries of transverse rounded barsor slats. forming the surface of each0011-. vey-er, whereby the articles inserted between the laps aregripped and held along lines of contact and the air isfree to circulatearound the articles, substantially as set forth.

5. In combination Witha pair of hot-air chambers spaced va suitabledistance apart, a

f suitable endless conveyer operating 1n the space between the chambersand having transverse rib formations spaced. suitable distances apartfor permitting the free circulationof air between and around saidformations, substantially as set forth.

6. A feed mechanism comprising a pair of endless conveyers in juxtaposedrelation, and having transversely-disposed rods or slats on theiradjacent laps between which the articlesare ped, and held againstwarping, substantial y as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HENRY n-Anzrn l Witnesses:

EMIL S'rAnEK, T. EVANS.

